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Japan's Covid-19 infections are surging at an unprecedented speed driven by the Delta variant, overshadowing the Olympic Games.
Tokyo reported a record 4,166 new cases on Wednesday, while a nationwide record of 14,200 new infections was set. New daily cases have doubled in the last two weeks, although deaths have halved.
Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga insists there is no link to the Olympics but he faces a growing backlash over concerns that hosting the Games sent out the wrong message to the public.
The Delta variant was leading to a spread of infections 'unseen in the past', health minister Norihisa Tamura told parliament as he defended a new policy of asking patients with milder symptoms to isolate at home rather than going to hospital.
A couple wearing face masks pose for a selfie at the Shibuya Sky observatory with Japan National Stadium, a venue for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in the background on Wednesday
Tokyo reported a record 4,166 new cases on Wednesday, while a nationwide record of 14,200 new infections was set. New daily cases have doubled in the last two weeks, although deaths have halved
'The pandemic has entered a new phase ... Unless we have enough beds, we can't bring people to hospital. We're acting pre-emptively on this front,' Tamura said.
But he signalled the chance of rolling back the policy, as the decision to ask some sick people to stay at home has drawn criticism from medical experts as putting lives at risk.
'If
